Nutrition Program

Proper nutrition and nutrition education is a keystone of the Camp Kingsmont experience. We provide campers and staff with a wide variety of familiar, well balanced, appropriately portioned, great tasting meals. . In addition, we provide the tools, information, support and hands on experience to continue the discipline of proper nutrition after summer camp. Our nutritionists meet weekly with the dining hall staff at Hampshire College to plan the three daily meals and snacks. Daily calorie count ranges from 1,500 to 1,800 depending on the needs of the individual camper.

Campers and staff eat in the Hampshire College dining hall, where they make food choices guided by our nutrition staff. Every meal has a variety of choices for the various food groups. In addition, lunch includes a sandwich bar alternative and both lunch and dinner offer an unlimited salad bar.

The cafeteria style meals are served by our staff, which has been trained in appropriate portion control. Meals include many of the foods campers know and love including pizza, waffles, chicken fajitas, cereal and ice cream. There is a weekly outdoor cookout featuring grilled chicken and hamburgers. A nutritionist is present at every meal to guide campers and staff in appropriate food choices, to make the campers feel good about their individual food choices and to allow the campers to gain the confidence they need to continue appropriate food choices at home.

A Highly Effective Program

Camp Kingsmont is not a diet regime but a proven, highly effective program which encourages a change to a healthier lifestyle. In addition to three wholesome meals and two snacks served daily, we provide nutrition classes, hands-on cooking classes, a supermarket trip and camp trips which allow campers to put their new knowledge of nutrition to use in real-life scenarios. These trips provide an opportunity for campers to exercise newfound judgment in food selections under the watchful eyes of our staff.

Weekly nutrition classes offer campers an opportunity to learn basic food science and a host of practical applications. In class we cover food composition, including the role of proteins, carbohydrates and fats; meal planning and the importance of portion control; how to make healthy selections when eating outside the home; how to read product labels; how to understand and address hunger cues and cravings; food preparation including the introduction of new foods and some healthy alternatives for a few old favorites; and the role of fitness and movement. We also focus on the role of lifestyle as a contributing factor to nutrition success. Finally, goal setting exercises drive home the lessons learned in the classroom. Campers maintain a nutrition folder and leave camp armed with the education and experience to make healthy choices.

Meet our Nutrition Staff

Our nutrition staff is led by Sadie Blumfield, an 11 year Camp Kingsmont veteran. Emily plans all meals and snacks and teaches the weekly nutrition classes. Sadie graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in Manchester, England with a degree in Human Nutrition and currently works full time as a wellness coach in Narberth, PA providing both group and individual nutrition education and counseling. Sadie spent many summers at Camp Kingsmont as a camper and has successfully lost and kept off a substantial amount of weight. The Kingsmont experience so moved Sadie that she decided to pursue a career in nutrition. Her educational and practice focus has been on childhood obesity and the role family can play in weight loss and weight maintenance. “In addition to providing me with the education and resources I needed to lose weight, Kingsmont also provided an opportunity to learn invaluable life lessons and create life long friendships. Kingsmont created a safe environment for me to grow, learn and experience new things without the fear of being judged.”

Sadie will be assisted by two nutrition interns. Each is currently majoring in nutrition in college and intends to enter the professional nutrition field upon graduation. The interns help teach the nutrition classes, assist campers and staff with appropriate food choices during all meals, take groups of campers to the grocery store to learn how to shop and how to read food labels, and teach weekly cooking classes. The cooking classes allow campers to prepare favorite foods and develop some skills in the kitchen.

This web site includes a wealth of information essential to a healthy lifestyle. In addition to a wide variety of recipes, you will find fitness guidance and emotional support. You are invited to submit recipes for publication and to participate in the various forum groups.

"Our after care program is a web based tutorial and discussion group offered two evenings each week moderated by Sadie Brumfield. For details on the nutrition after care program, please refer to After Careherein.